Forever bounded
by Ale-Russ
Summary: Link, the princess' appointed knight has left Hyrule. Upon seeing Zelda and a lords son getting engaged, Link hit his tipping point. Later, when the identity of a notorious criminal finally gets revealed, let's just say the royal family is shocked. With an emerging government scandal so big, will Link tell Zelda, and help convince her to fight it? {Zelink}
1. Prologue

**What's up guys? This is my first fanfic so go easy on me in the reviews ^-^! Or not, I openly accept flames and criticism.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own The Legend of Zelda or any of its characters.**

* * *

 _Prolouge_

It's been roughly 5 years since everything changed. The person I was vowed to protect, Zelda, meant more to me than any living thing.

However, as I developed more and more feelings for her, she came more and more detached to our friendship, in favor for a lord's son.

I told myself that it wasn't my place to judge, for she was the princess, the highest of the social heigharcy.

I was born an orphan, and fought for the Hylian Army for 7 years. Upon seeing my skills, I was promoted through the system until I was appointed at age 16 to be a personal knight for the Princess.

7 Years. That's how long I worked for the better of Hyrule, to make myself a decent salary, and to earn a place in the Princess's heart.

1 month. That's how long it took for the son of Aldus, Jack, to swoop into the princesse's world, and earn her respect.

I know it's selfish for me to think that the princess should spend more time with me, or even acknoledge me as one of her friends, but that's what I thought would happen at the time.

That night, the night in which the mighty Jack proposed to Zelda was my breaking point. Even 7 years of training didn't prepare me for the emotional damage seeing it before my eyes.

I know the scene so well, it often runs through my mind at night, as I'm trying to sleep. Jack took her out to the courtyard at sunset, told her to close her eyes, and then went down on his knees.

The worst part was, I saw how in love Zelda was. Her eyes shone with happiness, as tears of joy left her eyes. I watched as the woman I loved and adored say yes to some spoiled manchild.

That pain, I will never feel again. I knew I had to leave, for I couldn't adequately protect the princess after what happened.

As I left, I made a vow to myself. To forever protect the country, even from a distance, in whatever way possible.

* * *

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	2. Chapter 1

**What's up guys? I know the last chapter was short, sorry about that. This one is a bit longer ;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda and its characters.**

* * *

Running is one of my favorite activities. Other than sleeping or eating, it's pretty high up on the list. Running from people, is a cherry on top of the sundae which is running. Running from people while tormenting them? Now that's the dream.

Running up the stairs I thought of yet another insult. "I'm flattered that I'm worthy of 10 castle guards, but this is the equivalent of playing duck duck goose with a 5 year old."

Finally reaching the top of, I ran to where Zelda's room was. Being guarded by only two, I tossed my friend Shad's 'smoke bomb'. Apparently, he bought it off of a drunk mercenary, but said it works like a charm.

As it hit the ground, the longest 10 seconds of my life occurred. It bounced 2 times with dramatic CLANKS in front of the soldiers feet. The air was filled with suspense, as the soldiers looked down at the 'bomb' and then right back at me.

Oh man, I was gonna let Shad have it if I get out of this alive.

Behind me, the rather plump castle guards surrounded me. The two door guards sprinted downstairs to alert more security.

One of the guards took a step closer with his spear. "Get down on your knees, and no one needs to get hurt."

As my luck would have it, Shad's 'smoke bomb' finally went off, producing a colossal grey cloud of smoke. Because my mouth was conveniently covered with my attire, I easily ran past the circle filled with coughing soldiers.

Zelda's door was unlocked, and I prayed to Din as I was walked through that Zelda would be away. Locking the door behind me, I heaved a heavy sigh seeing Zelda's absence. Her room was triggering something inside of me, something I hadn't felt in a long time. Jealousy? Nostalgia? I quickly pushed my feelings back down and began at the task at hand.

Running my eyes through her grand room, I found what I came here for. On top of her nightstand was a diamond tiara, with rubies forming the Royal Family symbol. This treasure was worth at least thousands of rupees, and that was a conservative estimate. As I picked it up, I remembered that Zelda used to wear these to balls all the time, and she always told me how she hated wearing such expensive accessories. She thought they were tacky, and was afraid that she would come across pretentious.

Hearing the pounding of the door, I quickly scanned the room for an escape route. I didn't exactly think this through, for most of my 'adventures' involve improvisation. I once intercepted a lord's expensive package from overseas, and I had to hide on the same boat I came to steal from. Instead of tying my sail to the side of their boat like a normal person, I had to hide in one of the storage containers as my _expensive_ boat drifted away.

Time was running out as I found a window with a steep drop to the garden. The door finally gave in, and the guards ran towards me. Hoping I could live, I aimed for the nearest tree and jumped. As I put my arms out for one of the branches, I thought to myself how bad ass I probably looked.

As I grasped the branch while falling, I quickly swung forwards to the ground. Bad ass, I thought to myself.

The easiest way out of the castle was through the sewers. Although I loathed the thought of walking through it, I knew the only alternative was running many miles where I could easily get spot. Reluctantly, I headed towards the nearest sewer entrance.

I couldn't hear or see any castle guards behind me as I approached one of the entrances to the sewers. The sewers were sealed with a copper circle, which I opened, and then hopped into the dark abyss. Landing into the slimy solution, I truly wanted to die.

* * *

This was the worst thing that has ever happened to me in my life, by far. Other than attacking the occasional cuckoo, sometimes forgetting to flush the toilet, and my weekly heists I'm sin free! So what could possibly grant this living hell of a situation?

As I muttered more profanities against the gods, I approached the exit. Finally leaving the hellhole, I ran to the Castle Town staples where I dropped off of Epona. Quickly hopping on to her, we rode off towards the city Cranston.

With this tiara, I could easily help fund the orphanage and donate to the food bank. Ever since the invasion of the neighboring country Termina, lots of buildings and property were destroyed, leaving families homeless, and jobless. Normally, the government would help fund the reconstruction of the Town, thus giving the people their jobs and shelter back. However, the Royal Family has turned their back against us for no known reason, rendering the town in a desperate situation.

The invasion happened many months ago, and many remember it like it was yesterday. The Termina economy was in decline, and we cut off trade from them because many of our ships were being capsized, and overtaken by pirates. Putting the soldiers to war would help their economy for a brief time, so they overreacted and started after some of our towns. Cranston was the first town being attacked. They came in such a hurry that we evacuated most people, while the rest stalled for the others to head towards the woods. Instead of fighting, they burned down our buildings and left just as fast as they came. Only a dozen people were killed by the soldiers, and some were injured by the fires. Afterwards, Hyrule knew that their next target would be Kakariko, so they fought back, and Termina has been quiet ever since.

As I approach the city of Cranston, I see children and adults all helping with manual labor at the many farms. These are the only jobs around, for they were the easiest to be revived from the invasion. These people were the lucky ones, having jobs and a salary, and most likely owning some property. All the others are homeless, and are lucky to get a meal a week from the food bank.

As I pass my favorite bar _Mclarens_ , the bartender yells to me. "Hey Link! Come play for us tonight, we got a big crowd!"

"Maybe, I gotta see someone first. Don't let anyone touch my guitar though!" I yelled back.

Getting an exchange for this bad boy is not going to be easy. Everyone knows that this is passed down from the Royal Family, and owning such property could subject themselves in a lot of trouble.

The only shop I know willing to buy such contraband items is owned by a drunk sailor named Tetra. Me and her have a solid relationship. I steal stuff, she pays me a fair amount. Sometimes, she will even throw in a dagger or a bottle of scotch if she is in a good mood. You can never tell with sailors.

Walking into the small store, I spot Tetra head down on her desk along with a bottle of whiskey.

I slowly walk towards her and whisper into her ears. "Tetra, I got something for you..."

Half asleep she mumbles, "Do whatever you want with me, just don't wake me up." Upon seeing the glimpse of my face she shot straight up. "Sorry about that, what do you have today?"

Chuckling, I took the Tiara from my shirt and laid it gently on the counter.

Tetra's mouth dropped as she recognized what it was. "Sweet mother of scotch, is that what I think it is? ... I don't know Link, not a lot of people will be willing to buy this one. I'll give you 60 thousand, no more no less."

Normally I try to get a little more from my end, but I knew she wouldn't budge on this one. "Thanks, that will be enough."

"Do I want to know where you got this from?"

I took the heavy bag of rupees and started to head out. "Knowing will only worry you. Goodbye Tetra, see you in a bit."

* * *

As I walked into _Mclarens_ it was eerily empty. Those who were in the bar had their heads down, some were even crying. I spotted my close friend Shad next to the piano where he's normally, but this time his bottle of scotch is dangerously empty.

Eyes bleary, he sits me down. "It's here Link. The plague has finally hit us."

* * *

 **ooh :ooo**

 **if anyone knew what bar that tv show is from, I want to let you know that I love you.**

 **If you have any tips on writing, or find any errors, PLEASE PM me or leave a review!**

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	3. Chapter 2

**How are you guys doing? I'm extremely depressed because my cross country preseason starts, and I have to go to an annoying tennis camp right before I run.**

 **But hey! At least I have school starting in a couple weeks!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda or its characters.**

* * *

It was only a matter of time, really. The plague had infested Avordene, a nearby town weeks ago, and the death count was jaw-dropping. 9 out of ten people were killed who had the plague, and it spread like wildfire. Being a rather isolated town in the woods, everyone thought it wouldn't reach cities like Cranston.

The plague has very few symptoms, making it one of the scariest diseases to ever threaten Hyrule. When some symptoms start to show, such as fevers, coughing blood, and nausea, you pass quickly in your sleep. No one knows where it came from, but all cities and villages are closed for visitors for the time being. That is, except for us. Because we are the most impoverished city and Termina raided us, borders were a fools dream. It would be too costly, and helping stock the food bank and fund the orphanage were more prevalent problems.

Looking around outside was agonizing, for everyone knew what was about to come, but no one could leave. Leaving may be even more dangerous than fighting the plague, for you have a 10% chance of living if you choose to stay. But leaving the town with nowhere to go; there was lack of food and water, and monsters wandering about adds to an even greater threat.

Many couples were hugging each other, thinking about the painstaking odds that both of them will cease to exist in a couple of days or weeks. Many of the families were locked inside their houses to prevent transmission, but none of them had enough food and water to last them from coming outside. Being an airborne virus, if someone in city has it, it most likely already spread throughout the city. The city was like a timer, soon, no matter how hard you fight, the plague will eventually catch you.

"Shad, we need to do something."

"I'm already doing something. Contemplating my final days on this planet while drinking is a pretty draining task."

Strumming my knuckles against the piano, I thought of the odds of 2 people surviving the plague. Not knowing how to solve the equation, I guessed the odds were pretty low.

My friendship with Shad dates back to my leaving of Hyrule Castle. Being at the bar most of the time, we conversed to ourselves almost everyday for about a year now. He helps me with my 'adventures', and I play cards with him no matter how tired or drunk I am. As much as it pains me to say it, without Shad I would be pretty miserable.

"Castletown citizens have vaccines for the plague, for that's where most of the rich live, and vaccines cost a lot of money." I thought out loud.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking Linky?"

"Stealing vaccines from those rich bastards?"

"More like another drink, but I suppose I could do that."

* * *

Because Castle town citizens already took their vaccines, and the plague hasn't or probably won't hit them, stealing them has no real moral dilemma for me. The only problem was that the vaccine and medical supplies were stashed away in a Storage unit close to the dining hall. Because many people are there during the night and day, getting in is gonna serve to be difficult. However, since Zelda's marriage and coronation is coming to a near, they have been throwing balls almost everyday to celebrate. That would be the perfect distraction, for everyone would be entertained with dancing, drinking, and stuffing their uptight faces with food.

Shad was sketching something on his napkin. As I looked over at what he was drawing, he explained to me the gameplan.

"This is going to be the most difficult scheme we have ever pulled off Link." Looking at his sketch, he continued. "Getting into the castle is going to be hard, however I'm pretty sure we both know an easy way in from the staples in Hyrule Field."

"Shad, if you are suggesting I go into that hellho-"

"Man, great minds think alike. After you enter through the garden entrance, the vaccines should be stored in a room guarded by a couple guards."

"Sorry to interrupt, but the garden is only accessible from the dining hall. If I want to get to the room where they keep the vaccines, I'm going to have to look presentable to pass by many nobles."

"You can borrow one of my nice tunics and trousers, It will be fine. And to prevent yourself from getting recognized, you can cover yourself with a cap. Taking a heavy swig of his scotch and smiling he continued. "This is my favorite part Link. Assuming the doors are locked and you took out the two guards, you need to blow the door down. Don't give me that face, I can tell you want to do it."

"Although it would be pretty cool looking and likely fun, how am I supposed to not cause a scene by blowing a door down?"

"Making a scene won't matter. Once the door is down you need to grab as much of the vaccination as possible and skedaddle. I know, right? Sometimes it's best to go simple."

"And will you be joining me tomorrow Shad?"

Shad started to laugh, which then turned into a coughing fit. "Fat chance Link, if you don't return by early morning I will know you need help. Now go get some rest, you got a pretty eventful day tomorrow."

"Link, you look damn fine."

"Thanks Shad, may I ask why you have all of this clothing?" Of course I already knew the answer to that question. I convinced Shad one night to go to Castletown and buy some nice clothing, so we could preform together at the bar in style. At first, he was skeptical. But he then thought about how bad ass we would look together on stage.

"Hardy har, you still owe me those 300 rupees."

"I wouldn't forget it if my life depended on it."

As I walked out of Sheik's house and mounted Epona, Shad gave me one of his rare looks of affection.

"Stay safe Link, I want my clothes back without a scratch."

"Thanks Sheik, let's hope your makeshift explosive works."

With that, me and Epona were off towards Castletown. As the sun was starting to set changing the sky into a orange hue, galloping on Epona brought a wave of heart wrenching memories back.

* * *

 _"Do you think someone could ever get tired of this?"_

 _I looked at her, puzzled._

 _"Riding in Hyrule field. Watching the sun set while riding towards the horizon. Stuff like this makes me wonder what I would do without these breaks."_

 _I looked at her golden hair flying behind her with the wind, her rosy cheeks, and her serene expression for a while. She was by far the most beautiful women I have ever seen, especially at this time of the day. "Good thing you have me then. I think if I never came into your life, it would be pretty uneventful."_

 _"Laughing, she pulled her horse closer to mine. After playfully punching me in the arm a couple of times, she said, "Promise me that we will always come outside every night and do this. Please."_

 _"Always Zelda, until the end."_

* * *

Shaking my head, I pushed those feelings back down once more. I learned to sort of push my feelings down, postponing them for another day or so. For 5 years I've been doing this, and it works rather effectively. Thinking about anything else helps really, but as I was approaching the Castletown, the memories kept intruding.

* * *

 _"20 rupees I can hold my breath longer than you."_

 _"Really Zelda? You are 16 years of age and you still want to place these silly wagers? Let's raise the stakes. 100 Rupees you will lose to me." I said smirking._

 _As her smile widened even more, she withdrew her previous wager. "Instead of you paying me, I get to push you into the moat."_

 _"Hey, that's not that ba-"_

 _"With your clothes on" She added with her infamous sly smile._

 _"You're on, princess."_

 _As I was standing on the drawbridge pinching my nose, Zelda came closer and closer to me. Because I was on the edge of the bridge, I backed up into nothing, and I fell into the water. Zelda didn't stop reminding me about the incident for 2 weeks. As I fell however, the look on her face was worth the wet socks. While she often laughs about silly and ridiculous things, I never saw her laugh quite as hard as this. As she was on the ground crying, I knew I never wanted to spend a day without her._

* * *

Luckily, there was a pond in the garden, so I got to clean my shoes of the slimy solution from the sewers. Gazing to the entrance to the dining hall, I was rather nervous. Actually, that was an understatement. I was practically shaking, I could almost feel Zelda's presence in the room.

With the help of a prep-talk, I opened the door and blended in with the crowd. Wanting to put no attention to myself, I slowly walked to the hallway where the storage unit lay. Mid-way there however, the King called for everyone's attention.

"Greetings, greetings! Today once again, we celebrate the soon-to be Queen Zelda and her lovely fiance Jack!" The crowd erupted with applause, but I noticed the King's face was much paler than normal.

As I picked up my pace to the storage unit, the crowd started to chant.

"Kiss, Kiss, Kiss, Kiss!" They all seemed to be looking towards the soon to be queen and king.

I knew that looking at the scene would only cause anger, but not looking at Zelda proved harder than expected. Eventually, I gave in and took a quick glance in Zelda's direction.

Zelda, wearing a beautiful blue ballgown looked stunning to say the least. Her hair was braided neatly, but a few strands were behind her ear as always. Next to her was of course Jack, looking dashing as ever. Zelda and Jack both kissed for what it seemed like eternity, and in response the crowd released loud shrieks of pleasure.

Pushing my feelings back down, I headed towards the hallway. Many of the nobles stared at me, for I walked right through them, slightly on edge from that scene. Finally nearing the storage unit, I had to decide how to take care of the guards.

I have never killed an innocent in any of my heists, and my record wasn't going to be cut off tonight. Coming prepared, I walked behind one of stone pillars marking the entrance to the dining hall. Quickly, I threw a stone at one of the large tinted windows. Alarmed, both guards walked over there to see what happened. Throwing the bomb, I turned around and covered my ears. Even when I covered them tightly, the explosion was earsplitting, confirming that everyone in the hall heard it. Knowing the guards were running at me, I ran in and scanned the room.

Quite easily, I found a huge canister of a red liquid labeled _vaccination_ next to many syringes. Quickly, I poured all of the liquid into a jar I had in my shirt. As I was about to dash out however, something caught my eyes. There was a map of Hyrule across one of the walls, and Cranston and Avordene were both marked with red circles. None of the other towns or cities were circled, just us and Avordene.

Just as I was about to snatch the map and bring it back, I felt lightheaded and unbalanced. My legs stopped supporting me, and they felt like jello. Like a rag doll, I fell onto the wooden floor, darkness consuming me.

The next thing I knew, I was lying down on a sticky, rather smelly rock floor. Sort of suspecting where I was, I looked up confirming that I was in the dungeons. I must have been knocked out. Damn those bloody guards.

I remembered looking at criminals that lay down here, wondering to myself what was going through their heads. Now I was that criminal, but I most certainly knew what I was doing. Sort of. Looking around, I saw there were two guards standing outside my cell.

Death didn't seem so bad for the past couple of years. My sole drive was to protect the princess and Hyrule, and when I ran away from that, I was broken. Like a yo-yo without its strings, I knew I had to help these towns from the recent Termina invasion. It was the least I could do, and the only thing preventing me from becoming a useless corpse on the planet. After my first couple of heists, I had no real fear of whatever consequences lay ahead. Although I was still helping the country, something was missing, something I had 5 years ago.

Disrupting my thoughts, one of the two guards started talking to me. "You used to be someone I looked up to, Link. Now look at you, from knight to peasant you fell just as quickly as you rose." After an array of insults, he spat on the floor in front of me.

I was called many things in my life, so these insults didn't faze me in the slightest. I barely payed any attention to the two until they spat on the ground.

Slowly drifting asleep, I was awoken by a multitude of footsteps approaching my cell.

"Captain Ranagade, it's been a long time hasn't it?" I grinned.

"It's Commander now, and you're lucky we haven't publicly hanged you yet for all of what you done."

Confused on how they found about the other crimes, he continued. "I don't know what's the hold up to be honest. Breaking the knights code is a sentence to death, breaking into Hyrule Castle is a sentence to death, multiple accounts of thievery, if I were King I would skip the trial and hang you myself"

"Smiling characteristically, I said, "Nice to see you too old friend. How are the wife and kids?"

Almost as if I was polluting the air around him, he walked away with disgust. When he was out of sight, he said, "Your trial is tomorrow, try to wipe off your smart ass grin if you don't want to get stoned."

I never liked that guy, he was always took too long in the wash houses.

"So what's up with you two? I know dungeon duty is the worst, it smells god awful in here."

One of the guards was about to respond with some most likely unpleasant words, but the other one whispered something into his ear. "Ah, not allowed to respond to prisoners, I understand."

Getting bored rather quickly, I thought back to what I saw in the storage unit. What was that map about? Could it be that the plague had been placed on the two towns by the government? No, that was a ludicrous idea at the least, there is no benefit for them to kill off their citizens. After many hours of thinking about how Sheik is, theories of the map, and possible escape plans, I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **This chapter was a bit longer, than the first. The next chapter will most likely be a long one, so stay tuned :)**

 **Leave a review guys :D**

 **pm me if 5 hour energy is bad for teenagers**


	4. Chapter 3

**I know, it's been a while. Almost a year, in fact! However, I have an extremely valid excuse! I was taken captive by the mafia, and then my memory was erased by the feds! Blame the system xd**

* * *

"What will your last meal be?"

Opening my dreary eyes, one of the dungeon guards was standing before me, rather impatiently.

"Whatever happened to my trial?" I replied, square-faced.

Hearing the loud sound of leather boots hitting the dungeon floor, I was surprised to see Captain Assface walking briskly to my cell.

Smiling smugly, he replied. "It turns out if there are enough witnesses, and a large enough crime history, the king can overrule the trial completely."

Frowning, I looked up at the commander. "Then I guess this is it, huh?"

Tapping his foot on the floor, the guard reminded me of my final meal.

Thinking about it for a moment, I answered. "A pan-seared steak, with mashed potatoes, and a loaf of bread."

Leaving as quickly as he came, the guard and the captain scurried off.

Staring absently into the dirty dungeon walls, I came to the realization that there was a possibiliy that I might die today. Although Shad and I have always had a last-resort plan for this scenario, I highly doubted that he will know where the execution is, nonetheless get in through the security.

I've never contemplated death, I was always fighting against it, or giving it to monsters, or indivduals. It was never something I gave much attention to, I simply thought that my time would come, and I would pass.

Having a great amount of time, I thought about it. Who would remember me? Of course I know Shad would, but who else? Would Zelda care, or would she forget about me soon after I vanish? Would she mourn, or cy? Or would she be happy that the infamous criminal, Link, is dead.

Frowning at the thought, I tried to get some sleep.

I wasn't much for praying. Praying was a daily occurance that ended precisely after I left the castle, and Zelda. It seemed like times couldn't get any worse, so I neglected to ask for any cosmic help, or guidance. What would they do for me anyhow?

Turning around so I was facing the dungeon wall opposite from the bars, I went down on both knees and started praying. However, as soon as I started, I realized how little I've been helped, and how much I've been taken from, and lost.

I started out as an orphan, neglected, and completely alone. With immense work, sweat, and the occasional tears, I worked my way up to personal knight of the princess, and made quite good acquaintances along the way. How have the goddesses helped me? Why should I ask them for help now? I've made it this far, I'll either die, or make it out on my own. Like it always has been.

Almost 2 hours of me, my thoughts, and the occasional rat has gone by, only to be interrupted by obnoxiously loud heels, and the noise of multiple boots hitting against the floor. Guards, I presumed, after hearing the sound of armor clanging against their bodies.

A feminine voice spoke quietly, "I'm fine, leave me now."

After a few more loud steps, a woman was standing with her hands on her hips, staring at me. However, this wasn't just any woman. No no, this was Zelda, princess of Hyrule.

I stopped throwing a pebble at the mossy wall, turned, and looked up at the furious princess that lay before me.

Although on the verge of losing her temper, she still looked downright stunning. Her hair wasn't arranged in any fancy, or up-to-date hairstyle, it was simply in a single, long braid. Her eyes, cerulean blue, were brimmed with anger, betrayal, and sadness? She was wearing a modest blue dress, with no jewelry at all, yet effortlessly she was the most beautiful woman in Hyrule.

I looked at her and then resumed with my pebble throwing. The eerie silence that followed was one before a storm, but this wouldn't be a storm. Nay, this would be absolute hell unleashed.

Finally, Zelda broke the silence. "Knight, you owe me an explanation."

Pushing my hair back, I countered. "Ex-Knight. And do I really?"

"What the hell have you been doing? Stealing from our castle, trespassing, stealing from nobles, breaking into our castle, and not to mention abandoning your position as my own appointed knight!"

Sighing, she continued. "You betrayed Hyrule, its citizens, the king, and me."

"Actual-"

Staring directly into my eyes, she whispered. "And I thought we were friends."

I considered telling her my side of the story, what her chancellors and government were doing to the people, but I decided it was no use. She most likely knew of the actions, and if she didn't, she wouldn't believe me in this state.

Staring at her for what seemed like hours, I resumed throwing my trusty pebble at the wall.

She continued to pry. "Explain yourself, Link."

Silence enveloped the dungeon until she eventually snapped.

Looking to the side, she yelled. "I knew this was a mistake. Look at yourself. You're a pathetic, lousy, traitor to Hyrule, and I hope you ro-"

"Leaving Hyrule was my own choice, and you will never understand why."

With a grunt, I stood up, and matched Zelda's glare. "I guess I mistook your persona. You were once giving, generous, dare I say compassionate!"

Slowly walking towards her, I continued my rant. "The two poorest cities, Cranston and Avordene have been consumed by the plague. Thousands are dying!"

Narrowing her eyes, she seemed genuinely confused. "How does this have to do with me being selfish, and thoughtless?"

Now a few inches apart, I was practically breathing on her. "I saw the map, Zelda. Cranston, and Avordene circled, the two cities that just so happened to have an outburst. This was your doing."

Stepping back, she started laughing. What was she doing? Although it was most clearly exaggerated, it was much better than hearing her ear-splitting scream.

Now serious, she shook her head. "You base this huge, government scandal on a map with two red circles? Why would it be in our best intrest to kill off our own citizens?"

"You tell me, why have you not helped rebuild Cranston after the Termina ransacked the city during the invasion?"

By this point, she was already walking out. "I hope you come to peace with your ludicrous theories before you are killed."

When she was out of sight, I gave the dungeon wall a well-rounded punch, only to be met with a hurt first.

Zelda's POV

After leaving the dungeon, I excused myself to my chambers as I began to cry. It started off as a couple of tears, but later developed into a downpour.

Why was he doing this to me? It was hard enough couping after the resignation, but this was simply devestating. He had gone crazy, stealing, breaking and entering, creating havoc, he was now the person he once fought against for a living.

What was he even saying? Choosing to give the plague to two of the most inhabited cities, why would he even think of such a thing? And not giving supplies to Cranston?

The man has gone insane.

Although, I haven't heard of any discussion on helping Cranston after the Termina invasion. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask the matter to my father, the answer will obviously be that Hyrule has been giving them plenty of resources, and the city hasn't been managing them well.

But, Link has never lied before.

No, I told myself. It was a misunderstanding, or a lie.

Yes, it's all just a misunderstanding.

"What?"

Jack took my hand. "Cranston is a dump darling. Filled with poverty and crime, handing it resources wouldn't help the city prosper, they would simply fight over it, thus making more of a problem."

Jack continued, "Your father and I, plus the chancellors decided it would be best if Cranston stablized itself, before being given an influx of goods and services."

Bewildered, I pushed Jack away from me and started rubbing my forehead. "How could you assume such a thing? There are people dying, that could be helped, that could be given oppurtunities if they had the infrasturcture!"

Jack frowned and tried grabbing my hand once more. Turning away from him, I began walking back to my chambers. How could Jack find such an idea so appealing? And more importantly, how could my father aproove of such a thing?

"Zellie, we can't just give money away like that, it's not our job! We would have to raise taxes, make cuts, all for a chance that Cranston will return to its former glory!"

God, did I even know this man? When he first approached me he was full of kindness, and purity. This side of him, this selfish, unconcerned, and coldness has never been brought to light before.

Before she could make a response, two guards approached her.

Both kneeling, they spoke in unison. "Your Highness, the execution has begun."

Link's POV:

I've been to plenty of executions in my day. They were often boring, and little-to-no one attended the event. However, this execution, my execution, was jam-packed with people! I had to admit, I was a little flattered.

One of the changes to the ceremony was that it was outside. Normally it was done in the dungeons, or on different occasions, churches, with very little attendance. Walking over to where I was to be executed, I heard lots of murmurs, and whispers going around.

"It's true, isn't that Link?"

"Wasn't he the appointed knight?

Apparently, the fact that I was a knight has stirred up quite the commotion, and interest. Perhaps that's why so many people were here. Hell, even the stray dogs found a spot to watch on the plaza.

Scanning the crowd for Shad, I couldn't find him. Where was he?

"Attention! The king would like to say a few words before the execution begins!" A guard yelled.

King Rohan was a huge man. Not in a muscular way, just in a beefy way. His voice follows his weight pattern,and is extremely loud and bellowing. I could have sworn I saw the ground shake as he walked around.

"As many of you all know, I called the citizens of Castle Town in to watch this execution. Link was once the highest ranked knight in Hyrule, and now he is a traitor. Let this be a lesson to you all, no matter who you are, where you are, justice will be delivered. Commander, you may proceed with the execution."

I could tell the commander rehearsed her lines, and was thoroughly enjoying saying them.

"Link, you are hereby decreed guilty of abandoning knighthood, breaking into the castle on multiple occasions, thievery, and trespassing. You are to be hung by the neck until dead. Before this, however, you are granted 120 seconds to speak your mind. Your time begins now."

I got up, and looked around at the crowd. Most of the people seemed sad, almost pitying me at my current situation. Towards the side, I, at last, saw Shad, with a bow on his back. Nodding at him, I slowly walked towards the royals.

Sighing, I looked at the king and Zelda. Looking at Zelda, although keeping a straight face, she was clearly on the verge of tears. A little saddened by this, head down, I began to speak.

"I would like to say, from the bottom of my heart, I'm sorry."

I paused, stealing a glimpse at Zelda's shocked face. She thought I was going to apologize. Head up, I smiled full-heartedly.

"I'm sorry for the children out there that have to hear this."

Zelda's face reverted back to her normal face, and I could have sworn a small tug of a saddened smile crept on the edges of her lips.

"Where is the chef that cooked me my last meal?"

Scanning the plaza, I saw a man dressed in a white t-shirt, with an apron.

"Do you know how to cook a steak? If I wanted charcoal, I would just make a damn fire. And also, mashed potatoes doesn't mean a potato drink, it means that the potatoes are mashed. I didn't order a damn potato smoothie, god."

Everyone's face was still shocked by the sudden change of attitude. I loved it.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to end on a negative note."

Staring at the royals, I began to acknowledge all of them.

"Rohan, Zelda, Jacob, Co-"

"It's Jack." Jack quickly said.

Smiling at Jack's offended reaction, I continued. "Zelda, Jarvis, and Rohan, and everyone here. "

I paused for a moment to build the suspense. Looking around at everyone watching, they seemed genuinely interested in what I'm about to say.

"Cover your head"

Smiling widely, I looked at everyone's puzzled reaction, and Jack's still pouty face.

Shad, having loaded an explosive arrow in his bow, fired one straight near where the Royals were sitting. Everything then sprung into motion.

Rubble and dust covered the area, and numerous people began to cough.

Immediately, all the guards rushed to Zelda, and the Royals to see if they were fine, and only a couple remained near me. Knowing that this was my doing, the two guards were about to take me away, when two arrows knocked them to the ground.

Another arrow landed at my feet, but this one was a smoke-induced arrow. The smoke spread hundreds of feet around the area, consuming the plaza entirely. This was the time to escape.

Still having my hands tied together, I ran towards Shad's direction until I found the man laughing hysterically.

"God, their faces were priceless." He said as cutting the rope clean off with his dagger.

Shad and I were now running, constantly looking back to see if there were any followers. "I have two horses at the stables, but we have to hurry before they close the gates!"

Still running, the realization hit me. "Shad, we don't have the vaccines."

Turning back, and then back toward the direction of the stables, he yelled. "And? What do you suppose we do? The castle is guarded now more than ever, you're going to have to try tomorrow."

I have never failed a heist, and that was a great ordeal. I've been on hundreds, and I was rarely ever seen. This, and the fact that the guards will stack up on security the following nights made me realize what I had to do.

"Shad, I have to go back."

Bewildered, Shad said, "What? Link, I know how amazing I was today, and how easy the escape was, but I promise you it won't be like that if they get you back. The King would want you to be executed on the dungeon floor, after this commotion."

I stopped running and contemplated my options.

"Link, you'll die if you try and get the vaccines, not to mention that they probably put them in another storage space, even more heavily guarded than previously. This is a suicide mission, go back tomorrow." Shiek stopped running as well.

Having an excellent idea, I finally spoke. "We don't need the vaccines to get them."

Shiek, utterly confused asked, "Are you high?"

Go to the stables, I'll meet you at my shack in the lost woods."

Groaning, Shad ran off towards the stables, muttering curses as he went along.

"Wait, Shad!"

Still mad, he said, "Planning on jumping off a cliff now?"

"Do you still have that bomb you were working on?

Shad, unlike his previous, 'I'm gonna slit your throat face', smiled widely. "You want to use the funky shad?"

"Still haven't agreed on the name, just give it. It better actually do what you claim it does, or else I'm probably not gonna be at the shack till I'm a ghost."

Running back towards the castle, I knew I hadn't a moment to lose. To, 'get the vaccines without having them', I would need leverage, something I can use against Hyrule to get vaccines for Cranston, and Avordene. Thousands were dying in both cities, if they didn't get the vaccines soon, there would be nothing left of the two cities. Only the smell of rotten corpses, being eaten by bacteria.

Shuddering at the thought, I ran through the crowded plaza. There were still all the people there, trying to run away from the explosions. However, the guards blocked off their exits, most likely trying to find who fired the arrows, I assumed.

Shad's smoke bomb was still in large effect, so I dashed through it, and the many people inside of it. Although the smoke was harmless, it had the most rancid smell that Shad claimed to be, 'his little touch'. Unlike Shad's 'funky shad', this gas didn't make people unconscious, not that I knew of ofcourse.

After finally getting out of the cloud of smoke, I scanned my eyes for an unusual mass amount of guards, indicating where the royal family would be. After a few seconds, I saw the glimpse of Zelda's braid, along with Jack, and many guards surrounding them. They were headed straight to the castle and were extremely close.

Sprinting as fast as I could, I heard some guards behind me yell. "The prisoner is after the princess!"

The guards suddenly turned and ran towards me. Because I didn't have any weapons, I just needed to get close enough to Zelda to throw the grenade. Unfortunately, Zelda didn't make it easy for me to adavnce. I always knew she had great magic skills, but upon my leave, her skills had drastically improved.

I had to dodge blasts of fire, and the occasional energy blasts, while trying to get around the guards. It was no use, I had to try and throw the nade or scram. Throwing was never my strong suit. I remembered the time when I had thrown a beer to Shad, only for it to hit the counter 6 feet away from him.

Grinning at the memory, I threw it as far as I could in Zelda's direction. The grenade looked like it was going to go on target, until Zelda in a last ditch effort, flung an energy blast, to destroy the grenade in mid-air.

I could have sworn, I saw Zelda's blast skim the edge of the grenade, but not enough so it could destroy it. Finally landing, it exploded with green gas, that reached enough to make the guards pass out. Shad said that, 'if you smelt, or breathed it, you won't see it' for a good 4 hours. I knew that the gas would subside eventually, but the guards were coming up quickly behind me.

Saying fuck it, I ran in the toxic gas with my breath held, and my left hand covering my nose. Finally reaching Zelda's body, I grabbed her body with my free hand and ran towards the direction of the guards.

I looked at Zelda, to see if she was awake, and fortunately for me, she was completely out. As I was eyeing her, I saw that in one of her heels laid a dagger. Not just any dagger, however, this was a dagger I left her before I resigned. A sentiment, in a way to my years of knowing her. Grabbing it, I knew what I had to do.

The guards that were behind me before, were nowhere to be seen. Weird. They must have gone through the gas looking for me, and fell unconscious. Taking this opportunity, I ran back towards the plaza.

Luckily, the smoke was still ongoing. Unluckily, it stopped right as I was mid-way through it. As almost time itself stopped, I looked around. Everyone, and all the guards looking straight at me.

Time resumed, and I was then running for my life as 40 or so guards were running after me. If I got to the stables, there wouldn't be a way they could stop me. However, they were quickly gaining on me. I was exhausted, and couldn't sprint as fast, so slowly but surely the guards were creeping up on me.

Knowing I wasn't going to make it, I turned towards the guards and put a knife at Zelda's neck. Upon seeing this, they all stopped in their tracks.

Smiling, I spoke. "If anyone takes a step forward, have in good conscious that they will be the reason of the Zelda's death."

The guards took my words very seriously, almost as an order. As I slowly backed away, with my knife still at Zelda's neck, I then turned an ran towards the stables. Looking back, I saw that the guards stood in place, not able to move, for obvious reasons.

Smirking, Iat last approached the stables.

* * *

 **Well well well, I see that you have finished the chapter. I will update within the next week, for I'm getting my wisdom teeth pulled, and will have nothing to do.**

 **leave a review for my love**


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